The value of old-fashioned speed dating!

IN THE PAST, miniatures were especially valuable in introducing people to each other over long distances – a sort of old-fashioned speed dating!

They also help to raise the profile of famous people to celebrity status, as with this miniature of Arthur Wellesley, the 1st Duke of Wellington, famous for his victory at the battle of Waterloo in 1815. It made £4,400 in a recent specialist auction…